The Poke Saga: The Rise of Rocket
by EmilyAnnCoons
Summary: Ayako is a normal 12 year old girl living in Pallet Town, but when she meets a guy named Takeshi, her entire life suddenly changes. She finds herself on a mission to complete the pokedex for Professor Oak, as well as saving the entire Kanto region from an evil organization known as Team Rocket. Novelization of Red/Blue/FireRed/LeafGreen.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

CRASH! A pile of books now lied on the floor of the local professor's laboratory. Professor Oak turned with a start when he heard the crash. "What in the... Ayako, what have you done now?" The professor stood to his feet and stepped around a corner to look at the pile that was lying in the middle of his study.

"I'm sorry, Professor," a muffled female voice spoke from beneath the books. Oak stepped over and moved a couple of the books off the top of the pile, revealing a young 12-year-old girl underneath. She had long brown hair and was dressed in a simple sleeveless black dress. She was slim in shape. "I just wanted to put a book away...but I had to reach the top shelf." Ayako pointed up. "I tried to climb up, but I just caused the other books to fall on me."

Professor Oak smiled with his aged lips. He shook his head and chuckled. "You can always ask for help, dear."

"But I wanted to do it myself..." Ayako sighed as she looked down. "It's no fair being short."

Oak helped Ayako out of the book pile. "You've still got a few years, Ayako. You'll get taller eventually."

"But I've been the same height for a year now..." Ayako began to cry. "And all of the other kids in Pallet Town are taller then me. Even Amy is taller than I am, and she's a year younger than I am. It's no fair. Why am I only 140 centimeters tall?"

"Well, you still have a few more years of growing to do, Ayako," Oak pulled her close and knelt down to her level. "Some people are tall, some people aren't. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is. Your mother isn't very tall either. She's only 157 centimeters tall, but even so, she still manages well in life. You never know what might happen in life, you just have to make the best of it." Oak smiled and Ayako nodded with a sniffle. "Why don't you go play with the Pokemon out in the field? That's something anyone can do no matter their height."

"All right, Professor," Ayako spoke with a nod. She then turned and walked towards the door out of the laboratory.

Pallet Town was a beautiful place. It was mostly farmland, so the air was clean, the grass was green, and the sky was a bright blue. The sun beamed down upon the town without being blocked by pollution, making the town warm in the colder months. It also had the unfortunate side effect of making it very hot in the summer months. Luckily, however, it was a dry heat, making it feel cooler then other places where pollution created a humid and hot environment.

There were very few people who lived in Pallet Town, but this was due to it only being founded a few years back. Indeed, the town was not much older than Ayako, only maybe 10 years or so more. As well, the citizens of Pallet were very strict about their town, only allowing those who would not harm the clean environment to live there. Indeed, that was why the town had gotten its name. The term "Pallet" was in reference to the beautiful colors of the town that could only be seen because of its environment.

Ayako stepped out of the laboratory and into the fields behind it. Here Professor Oak had many types of Pokemon, all separated by fences and catalogued by species, environment type, and element. Near the lake, he kept the water-types such as Lapras and Psyducks. In the rolling hills, he kept the grass-types such as Bulbasaur and Oddish. In the open fields, the normal-types like So Dodrio and Rattata. Ayako loved looking at them all, and regularly played around with many of them. Today, though, she only leaned on the fence as she stared at them.

"I wish I could be taller..." Ayako sighed as she stared out into the field. She watched the different Pokemon running around and playing. Even the smaller ones were enjoying themselves. "I guess Pokemon don't really feel the same way. I suppose they're all short in a way. Most aren't any taller than me, but they don't mind."

"Well, well, hello there, shorty," a voice called out and Ayako immediately became irate. Ayako turned around to stare right into the chest of Midori Oak, the grandson of Professor Oak.

Midori was a young man, about 13 or so in age. He had brown hair that he had spiked in the front. He wore a pair of black jeans and a green short-sleeved shirt, which matched his eyes in color.

"What do you want, Midori?" Ayako growled as she looked up at him.

"I'm just as surprised about being here as you are. Gramps called me over here, didn't tell me what for."

"Then why are you bugging me?" Ayako turned and leaned on the fence again, still looking quite irate.

"Cause I can."

"Just leave me alone, Midori."

Midori stepped up to Ayako and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. "Come now, don't be that way. I only want to play with you."

Ayako slipped herself down and out of Midori's arms. "No thanks."

Midori gave Ayako a cold stare. "You'll regret it one day. When you're older and you're together with some jerk, you'll realize your mistake and be wishing you had been with a nice guy like me. I've got money, I'm nice, and I can take care of you easily when we're older."

"You're nice? If you're so nice, then why do you treat me like dirt? You say you care about me, but you call me names, you do things even when I tell you 'no', and you never listen to me. You want me to like you? Try treating me like a person instead of a trophy to win and maybe one day you might impress me enough to call you my friend again." Ayako turned and marched away from Midori.

"Stupid Midori... I hate him so much. Just who does he think he is, anyway? Why would I be interested in a guy like him?" Ayako mumbled as she marched through the town. Without much thought, she marched out of Pallet Town and out onto Route 1.

It took Ayako a few minutes before she fully realized where she was. At that moment, she stopped and stared, looking around her. "I didn't mean to come here..." she trembled. " S-stupid Midori...he made me come out here by making me angry... I-it's okay... I-I just have to turn around and go home... th-that's all..."

Ayako turned around and began to walk back in the direction that she had come from. As she walked, she began to hear terrible sounds. Some sounded like deep, low growls of creatures waiting to jump at her. Others sounded like horrendous beasts rubbing their claws together, enjoying the look of a young human fresh for devouring. She trembled as she continued along, but the path did not seem familiar. Nothing was how it should have been.

"D-do I go left here?" Ayako trembled as she stared at a fork in the path. One seemed to lead off to the right, where she saw nothing but a ledge, while the other seemed to lead on to nothingness. "O-oh no... I'm lost, aren't I?" she whimpered. "Someone... someone please... help me... I don't want to get eaten by a wild Pokemon..." She began to cry.

"Hey there!" a voice shouted and Ayako quickly whirled around in a hope of seeing a savior. What she saw was a boy who couldn't have been more than a year or so older than her. He was taller for sure, likely around 160 centimeters. He was dressed in a white shirt of some kind that was covered in a red short-sleeved jacket. He was also dressed in a pair of blue jeans and red sneakers. Ayako wondered how he could wear so much on such a warm day. The boy had black hair that was short, with only a little of his bangs showing from under his red hat.

On his shoulder was a yellow rat that had two long ears that ended in black fur on the tips. It also had brown stripes on its back, and its tail was shaped much like a lightning bolt, also ending with black fur on the tip.

"Hello!" Ayako shouted, hoping for a savior in this boy. "I'm lost! I need to get back to Pallet Town. Can you show me the way?"

"Pallet Town?" the boy asked as he stepped up to her. He raised his hand and rubbed his nose as he thought for a moment. "Can't say I've ever heard of the place. I'm from Viridian City."

"What are you doing all the way out here, then?"

"'All the way out here'? What do you mean?" The boy pointed to the north. "Viridian City is just about a minute that way."

Ayako turned, noticing a clearing in the forest. Beyond that clearing, she could easily see some kind of buildings beyond. "Viridian...City?" she dropped to her knees. "I'm never going to get back home at this rate!" She dropped her head and tears rushed down her cheeks. "I-I'm lost... I don't know how to get home... I'm going to get eaten by wild Pokemon!" She began to cry.

"Wh-whoa there!" The boy waved his arms frantically, trying to calm her down. "Don't cry! You're not going to get eaten. Don't you have a Pokemon to protect you?"

"No, I don't. I'm not old enough to have Pokemon yet," Ayako continued to cry.

"You don't?" the boy asked as he stared at her quizzically. "Then what are you doing out here?"

"Someone at home made me mad, so I marched away from him... and the next thing I knew... I was here..." Tears were rushing down Ayako's cheeks as she continued to cry.

The boy waved his hands frantically again, but it was doing no good. "Uh... uh... hey! I can take you home!"

"But you don't even know where I live! You've never even heard of Pallet Town, so how can you take me there?"

The boy smirked. "I've got a map!" He pulled out a small device that was long and diamond shaped. He grabbed it from the sides and pulled on it, opening it up to reveal a map on a digital screen. "See?"

Ayako sniffled as she saw the map now in his hands. "W-will that really get us back?"

"No sweat!" the boy shouted. "Just give me a second to see where Pallet Town is on the map, and I can take you there in a jiffy!" He looked down at his map and stared at it for a moment. His eyes scanned it for a moment before he nodded. "Yeap, I know how to get there now. Not a problem, just follow me."

Ayako sniffled again as she stood to her feet. Her legs were now covered in dirt, and she carefully brushed her legs off. "Thank you," she sniffled, and then stepped close to the boy.

"My name's Takeshi, by the way. What's your name?"

"Ayako."

"All right, Ayako, let's get you home." Takeshi turned and began to head south. Ayako followed quickly after, staying close to him.

As the two walked, she stared at the yellow rat on his shoulder. It was smiling happily, enjoying the ride on his shoulder without a problem. "That's a Pikachu, isn't it?" she asked after a few moments.

"Yeap, this is my buddy, Chu," Takeshi responded with a smile.

"So... you're a Pokemon Trainer, then? I know only trainers can get Pokemon..."

"Yeap, I've been a trainer since I was 10 years old."

Ayako stared, wide-eyed. "How did you start so young?"

Takeshi chuckled. "Well, it helps when you run away from home."

"You ran away from home?!" Ayako shouted. "Why would you do something like that?!"

Takeshi winced since she had yelled right in his ear. "Lots of kids run away from home at the age of 10. It's become such a normal thing that people almost expect it in most places. You're considered odd if you haven't left home yet when you turn 10."

"B-but...everything is so dangerous... You could get eaten!" Ayako waved her arms. "Or even worse!" She put her hands to her chin in fear.

"Nah, not with my trusty Pokemon at my side."

"But how did you catch a Pokemon? For that matter, how did you get a Pikachu? I hear they're super rare and can only be found in the Viridian Forest."

Takeshi chuckled again. "Well, they are rare, but I live in Viridian City, you know? I live right next to the forest."

"YOU WENT INTO THE FOREST?!" Ayako shouted loud enough to almost make Takeshi fall over. "But it's crawling with all kinds of creepy, nasty, icky bug Pokemon!"

"Bug Pokemon aren't icky and creepy," Takeshi huffed.

"They're bugs!" Ayako shouted again and Takeshi rubbed his ear.

"So what? They're just bugs."

"B-but...they're so icky...and gross...and they can sting you! They're huge and have really sharp and pointy stingers that hurt a lot!"

"Only Beedrill do... and you don't see many of them. They usually just leave Weedles behind in the forest to grow, and once they evolve into Beedrill, they leave the forest. Besides, aren't you forgetting some of them? Like Butterfree, for example, you can't hate them, can you?"

Ayako trembled. "Butterfree can put you to sleep... and poison you... and stun you... and they'll probably eat you."

Takeshi groaned. "Oh brother... Butterfree won't eat you. They're not even carnivores. They eat plants and leaves, not people."

"A-are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm a Pokemon Trainer, remember? I know these things." Takeshi turned to Ayako. "And what about you? How old are you?"

"I'm 12 years old."

Takeshi looked Ayako over, and then nodded. "Yeah, you're a bit short to be 12, but your boobs are big enough."

Ayako blushed and covered her chest with her arms. "What is that supposed to mean?!"

"It means you should have left home on your Pokemon journey already. In fact, you should have started it two years ago. Are you sure you're 12? You did say you weren't old enough to have Pokemon..."

"I am 12!" Ayako screamed right in Takeshi's ear. "And my family said I can't be a trainer until I'm 13."

"And you listened to your family?" Takeshi chortled. "Honestly, that's why you run away from home when you're 10. They probably expected you to and were surprised that you didn't yet."

"I-I would never run away from my family! I love my family, unlike you apparently." Ayako folded her arms and huffed as she turned away from him.

Takeshi growled. He was about to speak when he stopped, noticing the land in front of him. They had just reached the edge of Route 1 and were finally arriving at Pallet Town. "This is your home?" he asked as he pointed ahead.

"Yes! Oh my gosh! Pallet Town! I thought I'd never get home!" Ayako rushed forward. "I'm home again!"

"Watch out!" Takeshi shouted.

Ayako screamed as a purple rat jumped out from one of the bushes nearby, leaping at her.

"Pika... CHU!" Chu shouted as it leaped from Takeshi's shoulder, unleashing a bolt of electricity that struck the rat hard. The rat recoiled and tumbled from the electric blast.

"Rattata!" the rat snarled, and then ran off.

"You okay?" Takeshi asked as he walked over to Ayako.

"Th-that was scary..." Ayako whimpered.

Takeshi sighed. "Don't run off like that. Even though we're near your town, wild Pokemon are still around here." He grabbed Ayako's hand, which made her blush. "Come on, let's get you back home."

"Eep!" Ayako squealed as Takeshi pulled her along the path until they were finally back in Pallet Town. Once at the edge of town, Takeshi let her go.

"There, now you're safe. You can run back home now if you want."

Ayako stared at Takeshi for a moment before blushing and looking down a bit. "Thank you... I owe you a lot for saving me. Is there someway I can repay you?"

Takeshi gave a smirk and got close to Ayako. "How about a kiss?" Ayako slapped him hard. "Ow! Hey! I was just joking!"

Ayako folded her arms and turned around with a huff. "Well, then, maybe you shouldn't joke about that. Besides, you deserved that anyway after your comment about my boobs."

"What? They're nice and about the right size for a girl your age."

Ayako slapped Takeshi again. "Pervert!" she shouted and rushed off.

Takeshi rubbed his cheek a moment, and then chuckled. "Well, she's an interesting one."

"Do you think she will fit our objective?" a voice spoke, seemingly from nowhere.

"She needs training, but I think she'll be able to do the job without a problem."

"Then it is time she left her little town of Pallet," the voice responded.

Takeshi gave a nod, and then turned away from Pallet Town, heading back off to the north once again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Well, well, well, what are you up to, shorty?" Midori asked as he towered over her. The two were in Professor Oak's laboratory.

"None of your business, Midori," Ayako responded as she glared at him.

"I'll make it my business since you're at my grandfather's lab."

"For your information, I happen to like visiting Professor Oak. He's a kind person and treats me like a human being, unlike some people." Ayako gave Midori a heavy glare as she said those words.

"Don't tell me you have a crush on my grandfather..."

Ayako blushed heavily. "NO! Eww! Midori, that's gross!"

Professor Oak cleared his throat as he entered the room. "Well, I see you both are here."

"Yo, Gramps, why'd you call me here? Yesterday, I came to see you and you told me you didn't even remember calling for me."

"Apologies for that, Midori. I had indeed forgotten. You know how it is, though. As you get older you start to forget things. As it stands, I have need for both of you."

Midori scoffed. "Come on, Gramps. You know I can do everything you need done. You don't need to call in Shorty over here." Midori pointed to Ayako and she growled.

"I'd have some choice words for you, Midori, but my parents wouldn't approve of that sort of language," Ayako growled.

"Oh, and you always do what your parents tell you, don't you?"

"That's quite enough, both of you," Professor Oak spoke up. "Now, to the task at hand. I will be giving you both a Pokemon as of today."

"What?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"But my parents said I can't have one until I turn 13," Ayako quickly spoke up.

"And giving Ayako a Pokemon would be pointless. She doesn't know the first thing about Pokemon training," Midori spoke up.

"Ayako, I am giving you a Pokemon because your mother specifically asked me to," the Professor responded before turning to Midori. "Midori, shut up."

"But Gramps-"

"No 'buts', Midori. This is my choice, and I am making it. As it stands, I have a job I need if the two of you." The Professor turned and grabbed two small devices off of a table. They were red and both featured a door on the front that flipped open, revealing a collection of buttons on the inside. They were rectangular in shape, each having a large blue spherical portion in the upper left corner, followed by three lights of different colors next to it. The spherical object also seemed as those it could be some sort of light.

"These are the Pokemon Encyclopedias I have been working on for the last few years. As you know, it was always my dream to create an encyclopedia of every Pokemon in the world, but unfortunately, I never succeeded on that. These devices are merely shells with no data in them. That is where you come in. I want you two to take these pokédexes as I have named them and catch Pokemon with them. Every time you catch something, it will record all of the data of the Pokemon you catch. I want you two to fill these up and bring them back to me once you're done."

Ayako took hold of the pokédex and stared at it for a long moment. While she did, Midori took his. He turned, noticing a group of three balls that were red on the top and white on the bottom sitting on the table next to Professor Oak. "So, what Pokemon are you giving us?" he asked.

"Unfortunately, I have only three Pokemon left that are my own. All of the Pokemon in the fields, as you may know, are strictly owned under a research license." Professor Oak waved to the three balls on the table. "These three are owned on my own personal license. I have Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle. You two can decide what you want."

Midori smirked, then shoved Ayako towards the balls, making her trip and fall to the ground. He shrugged. "Let Ayako pick first."

"What?" Ayako quickly turned back to Midori. "Why do you want me to pick first?"

"It's quite simple. Each Pokemon is weak to one of the others. If I pick first, you'll just pick whatever one I'm weak to. That wouldn't show which of us is the better trainer."

"And I'm supposed to believe you won't do the same to me?" Ayako growled.

Midori chuckled. "I can absolutely guarantee you that whatever you pick will be worthless in your hands anyway. So really, wouldn't it just be better for me to pick the stronger Pokemon and wipe you out now?"

Ayako growled again. "Fine. I'll let you pick after me. I'll even let you take the one I'm weak to. It won't matter." Ayako stood to her feet. "I'll show you that I'm not worthless." She turned to the pokéballs, noticing that each one was marked with a small symbol. One had a leaf, which likely symbolized that it was a grass-type and thus was Bulbasaur. One had a flame, which likely symbolized that it was a fire-type and thus was Charmander. The last had a water droplet, which likely symbolized that it was a water-type and thus was Squirtle. She reached out and grabbed hold of the one holding Squirtle inside of it.

"Squirtle, huh?" Midori chuckled and shrugged. "Figures you'd go for the girly one."

"Girly?! How the hell is Squirtle girly?!" Ayako shouted, then covered her mouth.

"Well well, disobeying your parents and swearing, huh?" Midori stepped up to the pokéball that held Bulbasaur inside. "That's not something I expected from a goody-two-shoes like you." He snatched up the ball, then pointed it at Ayako. "Well then, it's time, don't you think? Let's have a battle, even though we know already who is going to win this fight."

Ayako tossed the pokéball in her hands. In a bright flash of light, the pokéball opened, releasing a small turtle-like creature with a swirly tail. Its body was a light shade of blue while its shell was brown on the back side and a pale brown on the front. "Let's do this, Shellshocker."

Midori chortled. "Really? 'Shellshocker'? You're giving it a nickname?"

"Yes!"

"Fine. Do as you want." Midori tossed his pokéball forward, releasing a strange lizard creature from the ball. Its body was a shade of green and it had a large green bulb upon its back. It yawned as it appeared. "Bulbasaur, let's get ready."

"Shellshocker, use Water Gun!" Ayako shouted, but the Squirtle only stared at her in confusion. "W-what's wrong?"

Midori tried to keep his laughter in, but he soon bellowed out. "Really, Ayako? These are low level Pokemon. They don't even have their elemental attacks yet. All they know right now is...Tackle!" Bulbasaur charged forward, slamming hard into the Squirtle.

"Shellshocker!" Ayako screeched. "Shellshocker, use Tackle!"

Shellshocker leaped forward at the Bulbasaur, slamming hard into it. It barely seemed phased by the attack.

"Bulbasaur, Growl!" Midori shouted and the Bulbasaur let out a low growl. Shellshocker stepped back, a look of intimidation on its face.

"Sh-Shellshocker? What's wrong?"

"Growl makes Pokemon afraid. It lowers their attack power by intimidating them. And, once they're weakened... Tackle!" Bulbasaur charged forward under Midori's command, striking hard against Shellshocker's chest. "Again!" Another strike right to the chest, Shellshocker fell over. "Oh, and there's more to Pokemon battles then just saying attacks, you know? You have to strategize, and do things other people won't think of. Bulbasaur, pounce on it!"

Bulbasaur leapt into the air, slamming hard against Shellshocker's chest. It then began to bounce itself up and down, repeatedly knocking the wind from its chest.

"Shellshocker!" Ayako shrieked. "Midori, tell it to stop!"

"Tell it to stop?" Midori scoffed. "In a Pokemon battle, the two fight until the other cannot anymore. If I told it to stop... well... that'd be the same as surrendering."

Ayako bit her lip as she watched Bulbasaur continually jump up and down on Shellshocker's chest. With each jump, Shellshocker barely got time to take a breath before the air in its lungs was again knocked out. "Shellshocker, return!" Ayako held the ball up and a beam shot from the center of the ball, catching hold of Shellshocker. In a flash, it returned to the ball. Bulbasaur growled in response. "Enough! You win, I surrender!"

"Well, it looks like we know who is the better trainer, then." Midori waved as he turned away. "Just give it up, Ayako. You don't have the skill to defeat even me. You're not going to have the skill to manage fighting other trainers. Just put the ball back and stay here in town. I'll handle filling the pokedex for Gramps." Midori began to walk away. "Smell you later!"

Tears began to roll down Ayako's cheeks. She dropped to her knees, then began to sob. Professor Oak knelt down next to her. "It's okay, Ayako," he spoke in a soothing voice.

"B-but Midori is right," Ayako cried. "I'm worthless. I can't be a Pokemon Trainer. I'm not ready, I'm not even 13. Why did my parents want me to have a Pokemon now?"

"Because they believe you are ready, and I believe you are ready. Remember how people used to say I have the ability to see the true potential of a person? I see great potential in you. You just have to go out there and live. You can't spend your whole life here in Pallet Town. Go, Ayako, I know you'll do great."

Ayako looked up at Professor Oak and sniffled as she stared into his eyes. There was something there in his eyes that said he wasn't lying. She could see just how much he believed his own words, and at that moment, Ayako saw herself in the eyes of the Professor. She saw great potential in herself, but she also saw she wouldn't be able to meet that potential while cooped up in Pallet Town. She didn't know what the future held, but she knew that Professor Oak could see greatness in her future.

Ayako wiped her eyes, then slowly stood to her feet. "You're right. I'm not going to become a good trainer if I just sit here in Pallet Town without any Pokemon. I have to go out there. I have to train, I have to learn." She wrapped her arms around Professor Oak. "Thank you, Professor."

"Your welcome." Professor Oak reached into his pocket and pulled out five pokéballs. "Here. I was going to give each of you a few pokéballs to start with, but Midori didn't stick around to get his. So, take these, they'll help you get started."

"Thank you, Professor, for everything."

"You're welcome, Ayako."

Ayako turned and walked towards the door of the lab. As she stepped out, she looked out towards Route 1. "This time, I have a Pokemon with me. I won't be afraid to go out there. I'll march out there and learn what I can. I will complete the Professor's pokédex." She gripped the pokédex firmly. "All right, let's go!"


End file.
